The present invention relates to bindings for winter sports equipment. It finds particular application in conjunction with ski bindings and will be described with particular reference thereto.
Typically, the boot of a skier is disengagably retained on the ski. Commonly, the front end of the boot is mounted in a front fixation or stop. The rear end of the boot is releasably retained in a rear fixation or trailing end.
In the event of a significant force which places the leg or joints of the skier at risk, the ski boot releases at either the front end or the rear end of the boot, or at both ends simultaneously. To this end, the front stop may comprise a jaw which pivots around a vertical axis and the trailing end a jaw pivoting in an upward direction around a horizontal axis. The front and trailing edge jaws are each acted upon by a disengagement spring whose compression is adjustable to adjust the force at which the ski boot releases.
Support devices have, heretofore, been positioned beneath the front of the boot in order to limit the friction of the bottom surface of the front end of the sole on the ski. Such support devices are fixed or connected to the ski adjacent the front of the boot between the boot sole and the upper surface of the ski. In this manner, the front portion of the sole does not rest directly on the ski, but on the support device. The support device, for example, may be a small plate of a low friction coefficient material such as polytetrafluoroethylene (TEFLON.TM.). The plate may be a fixed element or a movable element which laterally tracks the end of the boot at the moment of its lateral displacement. See, for example, published French Patent Application No. 2,652,508. Such devices provide improved skier safety. One drawback of such devices is that the displacement of a movable plate may be counteracted in an uneven or uncontrolled manner.
The present application overcomes the above-referenced drawbacks.